The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-06-24
THE COUNTRY'S PROSPERITY
Comptroller Trenholm Talks of Bank
Investments and Real Estate BOoms.
The President Casting About to Find Way Of
Neutralizing the Flag Misunderstanding
Rumor About Two New York Editors
FINANCIAL PROSPECTS.
Views OF Mr.. Trenholm on Bank Investments
and Real-Estate Blooms.

Views OF Mr.. Trenholm on Bank Investments
and Real-Estate Blooms.
Washington Special.
The end of this month closes the fiscal year.
As great many public and private corpora
tions also close up their books June 80. good
idea can be formed at this time of the prosperity
of the country during the last twelve months.
From interviews had with treasury officials, it is
learned that the business outlook is good, and,
unless speculation shall run riot. the people of
the United States may look forward to another
year of prosperity. The more conservative
authorities, however, recognize the strong tend
ency to speculation Perhaps the best financial
barometer in the country is the Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency. In this Office all
the transactions of the national banks are most
carefully watched and the close scrutiny kept
of their business and the way in which it is done
enables the Comptroller to tell at glance the
condition of trade. 1.-THE business of the coun
try said Comptroller Trenholm, lis, l should
say, in a good condition generally. There seems
to me to be nothing to cause apprehension Or to
anticipate any great financial disarrangement"
rs there not a somewhat dangerous tendency
TO speculation In real estateP
I'm measure yes, although do rot want to
be understood as saying that the banks are not
properly protecting themselves, or to cause any
feeling of alarm. While in some respects real
estate Is the best security possible on the other
hand it is not the security that bank should
deal in. This is fact that have for some time
continually tried to impress upon the banks. A
bank should not lock up its money in real estate,
because of the uncertainty of the market for
such property. If the banks money is in real
estate there are many things to be considered.
There is, first. the value of the property. Take
two ao iacent farms of the same One may
be worth double what the other is because of
natural conditions, or because of the thrift and
ability of the farmer, or because of the greater
facilities the one has over the other. Yet there
is the danger of a banker advancing money to
Farmer A the valuation of farmer BIS prop
erty, which would be erroneous. Again. prop
erty is fixed and cannot be marketed where the
greatest demand exists. County may want
land badly and county may have a surplus,
but you cannot move foot of to A you
could wheat, corn, or cotton"
DO you think that the banks are tying them
selves up in real estate loans!"
mo. not at the present time but have point
ed out the possible dangers and the need of eau
ton. The great movement in real estate
throughout the entire country partly comes from
the improved conditions of trade and the natural
growth of the country and partly due to
speculation. Let me cite extreme In
northern Alabama are two towns eighty miles
apart The owners Of the property along the
line Of the railroad between the two places al
ready see the time when these two towns will be
so densely populated that the intervening prop
erty will be of almost inestmable value Con-
sequently to-day they base the value of their
holdings that future, and of course this is
pure speculation. This case is extreme one.
yet, in lesser degree il can frequently be found
elsewhere There has been tremendous de-
velopment during the last year in the great iron
States of the South and also in many Of the
Western States. The starting of new enter
prses has created BOOM, and speculation has
to some extent followed. But while there has
undoubtedly been some overcapitalization and
imitation, the whole the prosperity is solid
and substantial"